Nielsen Say Cable TV Is Stickier Than SVOD

Cable subscribers who also have a subscription to a streaming services such as Netflix are more likely to drop the streaming service than cable, Nielsen said Thursday.

During a briefing with reporters, Glenn Enoch, senior VP of audience insights at Nielsen, said that judging by its panel of 22,000 viewers, 99% of cable subscribers who also had SVOD still had cable three months later. More than 4% tended to drop the SVOD service.

Enoch called the notion of industry-accepted narrative that SVOD is reducing the number of cable subscribers largely a myth, noting that cable subscription appeared to be “stickier” and less subject to churn.

Enoch at Nielsen also noted that while it is true that 18- to 34-year-olds were most likely to drop their cable subscriptions, they were also the most likely to add a cable subscription.

“They move around a lot,” Enoch said. “Older adults are less likely to move, drop cable service and add it back on after they move.”